Based off everybody's favorite review aggregator, which MCU superhero is the most super? Which
entry in this sprawling cinematic universe stands above the rest? Well, Marvel fans,
assemble, because today we're looking at the best MCU movies according to Rotten Tomatoes.
Ant-Man and the Wasp was in the unenviable position of being the immediate follow-up
to Infinity War when it hit theaters in July 2018. Marvel fans had been left reeling after
Thanos’ infamous snap and were now left with a world where only fifty percent of their
favorite heroes remained. It was the middle of summer, the height of blockbuster movie
season, and there was only one thing the studio could do to save it: hand the box office reins
over to Paul Rudd.
The film actually takes place just prior to the events of Infinity War, which keeps it
unburdened by the heavy weight of lost Avengers. It’s a welcome break from a story that had
delved into some pretty dark MCU territory, and it’s exactly where Rudd’s Scott Lang
shines the brightest. The bulk of Ant-Man and the Wasp's story centers on a rescue mission
to bring Janet van Dyne back from the quantum realm, while trying to fend off the sabotage
attempts of a supervillain called Ghost. But there’s a good portion of it, along with
a main source of comic relief, that comes from Lang's attempts to keep the FBI from
discovering he's escaped his Civil War-imposed house arrest, using a giant ant as a decoy.
The whole thing is reminiscent of a simpler time for the MCU, a time where the biggest
problem a hero had to face was more Earth-bound, and the entire fate of humanity didn’t lie
in the balance. It's a light, easy film, made all the more enjoyable by Lang’s signature
snark, and the banter between him and…well, everyone he comes into contact with.
"Relax, no one's gonna recognize us."
"What, because of hats and sunglasses? It's not a disguise, Hank. We look like ourselves
at a baseball game."
Mostly, Ant-Man and the Wasp does a great job of showcasing how big of an asset Hope
van Dyne, the Wasp half of this film's dynamic duo, is in the MCU. She proves to be much
more than just a sidekick here, she's the glue that keeps this team together.
By 2016, we'd seen armies of alien goons, magic space rocks, superheroes, and political
intrigue. But what we hadn't seen yet was straight-up ancient mysticism. Neither had
Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange, an arrogant but brilliant surgeon who loses the
use of his precious hands in a car accident and travels to an Asian monastery for treatment
when his own failed experiments leave him destitute.
There, he learns of the sorcerers, led by the Ancient One, who use the mystic arts to
protect Earth from all manner of other-dimensional threats. It's a solid MCU outing, and we're
definitely looking forward to its sequel, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Granted, not everyone counts the movie as one of their all-time favorites, even if they
like it, but what can't be denied is that Cumberbatch is simply wonderful in the starring
role. He shows up frequently in other MCU movies and is rarely not one of the best things
in them. In Ragnarok, he trapped Loki in a falling dimension for several minutes and
sent Thor tumbling down the stairs. In Infinity War and Endgame, he was a source of collected
reason and leadership when cool heads and battle plans were needed most. And in his
own solo film, he wonderfully mixed aristocratic snark with genuine empathy for others, at
least by the end of the film, anyway.
"Breaking the laws of nature, I know."
"Well, don't stop now."
Is it too much to ask for Strange to show up in every movie? Even if the universe doesn't
need him that day, he's always a welcome presence.
The MCU has heavily relied on science fiction and fantasy throughout its run, featuring
space aliens, time travel, gods, mystical arts, and super powers. Those flashy elements
may seem like crutches for weak or immature storytelling to some viewers. But look no
further than 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier for proof that Disney's Marvel films
were always capable of diving into the realm of grounded political thrillers without losing
any of their edge or appeal.
This film can compete with, or arguably surpass, any Jack Reacher, Mission: Impossible, or
Bourne film when it comes to espionage and intrigue, friendships and betrayals, and the
ever-present threat of big government run amok with cash and power.
Maybe the movie works because, even though it has phenomenal action choreography and
fun performances, it never relies on those things to the point that it loses touch with
the character-based themes that always made Captain America such a draw. Namely, what
is the nature of patriotism? At what point does patriotism, usually associated with some
degree of government obedience, require us to rebel? Perhaps most importantly, to what
should we be ultimately loyal, the government or our principles?
"I thought I knew whose lies I was telling, but I guess I can't tell the difference anymore."
The answers might seem obvious, but as Winter Soldier shows, doing the right thing isn't
always easy. Luckily for us, it's hard to imagine a better man to show us the way than
Steve Rogers. As evidenced by its mighty showing on the TomatoMeter, the critics were inspired.
On the one hand, the popularity of the MCU following the record-smashing blockbuster
that was Avengers: Endgame was at an all time high. On the other hand, it's hard to get
people excited about a chapter of a story that takes place after what was, in effect,
the climax.
"Does anyone even have a plan?"
"I have a plan."
All our emotional investment was paid off in Endgame, and it would've been a fine conclusion
to the whole franchise, even if certain characters still had some life and fight left in them.
But the MCU has never shied away from doing what you're not supposed to be able to do.
Far From was a funny, heart-pounding good time that taught us a little something about
the nature of courage and confidence the way only Tom Holland's Spider-Man can.
They also had a winner on their hands with Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio, and they didn't
take the obvious approach with him by making him an actual super-powered being. It might
seem rather lame to have the hero pull the mask off the baddie at the end, exposing him
as a fraud like the Wizard of Oz or any Scooby-Doo villain. But sticking with the comics, in
which the character is a talented special effects artist, worked well here. After all,
what is Mysterio if not a miserable fraud with too much time and money on his hands?
By 2014, people had come around to the MCU's uncanny ability to popularize characters only
die-hard comic fans would've cared about beforehand. But that was severely tested when Marvel announced
Guardians of the Galaxy. We had at least heard of Captain America and the Hulk before their
movies came out, or had maybe seen the...less than spectacular films they'd been in before
Disney bought the rights. But Guardians of the Galaxy? Star-Lord? Drax? What is that,
a talking raccoon whose best friend is a giant tree named...Groot? Come on, Marvel.
"This is what we get for acting altruistically."
"I am Groot."
"They are ungrateful."
But the results don't lie. Guardians wasn't just another breakout hit. When it came out,
it was competing with Iron Man or The Avengers for the title of best MCU film. It was certainly
the funniest, the wackiest, the zaniest, and the most out-there tentpole blockbuster anyone
had seen in some time.
And, all these years later, it still has one of the most beloved and talked-about soundtracks
ever. Those classic rock hits had been around for decades by the time the movie came out.
But now whenever you hear "Hooked on a Feeling," you probably picture Chris Pratt dancing in
an alien cave, swept away by the music of his troubled childhood on Earth. Sound weird?
It is. And that's why we love it.
For the people who'd spent eight years watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe unfold prior
to Captain America: Civil War, the film felt something like watching our parents fight.
It's a testament to the fantastic writing, development, and portrayal of the characters
that fans were so invested. All of those characters found themselves at odds in the film over
a proposed law that would've made the Avengers subordinate to the United Nations.
To put it simply, Cap and his friends were against the law, citing the untrustworthiness
of government. On the other hand, Tony and his friends were in favor, citing the collateral
damage the Avengers had caused over the years and how a lack of accountability may have
contributed, even if their intentions were pure.
"If we can't accept limitations, we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys."
"Tony, if someone dies on your watch, you don't give up."
"Who said we're giving up?"
Thing is, they're both kind of right. And it was both unfair and a little brilliant
to ask the fans to choose between them.
If there's one criticism we have about this storyline in particular, it's that it didn't
end up having long-lasting consequences, since the existential threat posed by Thanos forced
everyone to make nice real quick, and it wasn't really re-addressed. But for the two-hour
duration, it represented a new, more mature, more thought-provoking era for the MCU between
all the shoot-outs. It was a movie that made you think about what you would do when faced
with the reality that your heroics have hurt people, but it also confronted audiences with
the truth that some questions demand easy answers that don't actually exist. What if
the truth lies somewhere in the middle, between black and white, where nobody can reach?
The first few MCU films had all beaten rather low-to-middling expectations. Money had been
made. A successful sequel had proved sustained interest. Fans were impressed. It was no easy
feat, but the world looked to move on to the next thing. The MCU wasn't done. They had
plans for their hard-developed characters, on a scale unprecedented in the history of
superhero cinema. We're talking about the team-up movie. The MCU braintrust had laid
the groundwork in post-credit sequences featuring Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury recruiting our
solo supers for something called "The Avengers Initiative," and now Marvel had to deliver.
To say they did is an understatement.
The Avengers, which followed six heroes teaming up to stop an alien invasion led by Thor's
bitter, adopted brother, Loki, was an unexpected knockout that grossed $1.5 billion worldwide.
The action was great, and the set pieces were impressive. But what made it work was the
fact that the characters, and the actors portraying them, had tremendous chemistry together, which
brought to life director Joss Whedon's sharp script.
"What's your thing, pilates?"
"What?"
"It's like calisthenics. You might've missed a couple things. You know, doing time as a
Capcicle."
By the time the alien baddies had been beaten and the credits started to roll, things had
changed. This team-up movie didn't feel like the end of an interesting little superhero
excursion. Instead, it felt like the beginning of something truly game-changing.
Reboots are hard to nail, especially when you're trying to breathe new life into a superhero
franchise. Take Spider-Man, for example. There had been two separate live-action Spideys
before 2016, so audiences were understandably wary of a third. However, when Disney dropped
a brand new Spider-Man into the MCU by featuring him in Captain America: Civil War, it was
unlike any previous live-action Spider-Man before.
The response was electric.
People who'd groaned at the thought of yet another wall-crawler gracing the big screen
were suddenly demanding to see more of this Tom Holland kid. They said he was perfect
for the role and they were right. He merged Tobey Maguire's lovable dorkiness and Garfield's
sarcastic cool into a Spider-Man truly worthy of the character's massive legacy.
"Are you an Avenger?"
"Yeah, basically."
And 2017's Homecoming, which didn't bother with the classic origin story we all know
by heart anyway, proved he could go the distance. It's up there with the best coming-of-age
stories in recent memory. And in typical Marvel movie fashion, it refused to let itself be
little more than an advertisement for the brand. Yes, Tony Stark is in it. The Avengers
are always there, revered by Peter's high school classmates. But this is his movie,
and he shines. Clearly, the critics agreed.
After the somewhat disappointing first two Thor movies, which are often considered to
be weaker than other MCU outings, it was clear something was...off. The fantastical elements
obviously weren't the problem, because they loved those same things in Guardians of the
Galaxy. It wasn't the action. There was no shortage of great bang for your buck, high-stakes
fight scenes in those movies. And it wasn't the villain. Tom Hiddleston's Loki broke out
of 2011's so-so Thor to become one of the most enduringly popular characters in the
whole franchise, and The Dark World is far from the only Marvel movie with a forgettable
baddie.
It wasn't the lead, either. Chris Hemsworth is good-looking and likable and even funny,
when the movies allow him to be. But that's what the first two flicks were missing, wasn't
it? There were funny moments, but the movies themselves weren't comedies. What if they
were? What if, like Guardians of the Galaxy, they simply leaned into the inherent ridiculousness
of the God of Thunder and wore it on their sleeves?
"I choose to run toward my problems, and not away from them."
We imagine the conversation went somewhat like that, anyway, because Thor: Ragnarok,
following the titular character's attempts to get home and save his people from his evil
sister and a giant lava monster, is a laugh-a-minute riot that critics fell in love with. And no
wonder. Writer-director Taika Waititi is to comedy what Jordan Peele has become to the
horror genre: an unstoppable rising star.
At the beginning of 2008, Iron Man was a relatively obscure, B-list comic book character. Sure,
we'd heard of him. Guy in the red and yellow armor, right? But by the end of the year,
thanks to a career-defining, comeback performance from Robert Downey Jr. as the titular, smug,
billionaire turned mech-suit-wearing defender of the weak and innocent, he was nearly a
household name. But even that doesn't truly describe the impact this film had, because
nobody could have possibly guessed how huge the franchise would become over the course
of the approaching decade.
The beginnings were rather humble, compared to the all-out cosmic brawl for the universe
in Endgame, but if you trace it back to the origins, you'll see it's all there. Great
action. Great jokes.
"Let's face it, this is not the worst thing you've caught me doing."
A menacing villain in Jeff Bridges' Obadiah Stane. But all those eye-popping explosions
and cool fight scenes aside, the focus is, rather simply, on a larger-than-life but flawed
character whose decisions drove the drama of the story.
In overcoming his own demons, Tony Stark finds the strength to save the world. It's simple,
classic stuff that's too often overlooked by so many lesser blockbusters and cinematic
universes. Character counts. And when you have a great one, maybe outfitted with a pair
of rocket boots, the sky's the limit. Both critics and fans loved the film and have rewarded
the franchise it launched with oceans of cold, hard cash.
Lots of massively popular, big budget, multi-character franchises concluded in 2019. But Avengers:
Endgame did it right. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and Game of Thrones both reached
their respective finish lines only to leave fans wanting. The Russo brothers knew better.
They knew that while action set pieces and special effects are great, or perhaps even
essential, depending on the film, they're worthless without a strong, character-driven
story.
Infinity War gave us reason to hope for a strong conclusion by showing it was possible
to give well over a dozen beloved characters enough things to do onscreen without forcing
it. But Endgame proved it was possible to give those same characters, who we'd spent
the last 11 years getting to know like family, a proper conclusion to their respective, decade-long
arcs.
"Then again, that's the hero game. Part of the journey is the end."
Banner learned to live with and appreciate his "demon." Thor learned to accept himself
and his failings. Iron Man, who we'd met in 2008 as a self-interested playboy, made the
ultimate sacrifice to save mankind. Steve Rogers, having done it all day for long enough,
finally handed his iconic shield to a friend and retired. Not everyone is done forever,
thankfully, but this film showed us all why good endings are so special: they define everything
that came before.
According to Rotten Tomatoes, Black Panther is the best MCU film ever, and that's saying
something. Black Panther did, or at least came very close to doing, what many people
suggested could never happen again after 2008's The Dark Knight. It transcended the genre
and became more than just another big budget comic book movie. Instead, the film was a
cultural moment all by itself. It was a topic for dinner table discussion regarding its
themes of race relations, fatherhood, destiny, family expectations, and the nature of revenge
and justice. If that makes it sound thematically overstuffed, it wasn't. It was done tastefully
and never neglected to break up the considerate storytelling with masterful fight scenes and
gorgeous, Afro-futuristic worldbuilding.
And then there was the antagonist. The MCU's problems with developing memorable villains,
Loki and Thanos aside, have been well-documented. We certainly didn't need another CGI alien
baddie hellbent on global domination. Director Ryan Coogler, fresh off the success of reinvigorating
the Rocky franchise with Creed, clearly knows a thing or two about creating engaging and
complex characters. In Black Panther, he broke the MCU villain curse by giving fans not one
but two standout antagonists, the always amazing Andy Serkis as Klaw and Michael B. Jordan's
Killmonger, a villain for the ages who fancied himself a liberator for oppressed black people
the world over.
"There's about two billion people all over the world that looks like us. But their lives
are a lot harder. Wakanda has the tools to liberate them all."
Even T'Challa understood that while Killmomger had to be stopped, he did have a point. Sometimes
necessary victories aren't glorious at all. So, writers and storytellers out there, learn
from Black Panther the same lesson Coogler had going in: If you want your villain to
be memorable, make them right.
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